Daily Archives: February 23, 2008

Maybe you have noticed that there are a lot of groups out there who have used the gospel of Jesus Christ for a variety of purposes, such as getting political power, mostly on the Left these days, but chiefly for making money. Huge multi-million dollar churches dot the landscape from coast to coast, and this outward sign is not necessarily an indication of an inner religious fire, but often something quite sinister. Jesus warned us these things would happen in the last days.

Often these cultists use the term “emergent church” or “church growth movement.” For want of a better term, we can call these hordes of wolves in sheep’s clothing the Churchians.

Here is the story of how a cult is trying to destroy a group of Chinese believers. I have asked for further court documentation and was kindly provided, by one of the Chinese church leaders, with sufficient evidence that this is real. Let us pray that their wicked designs will be thwarted.

Donald Hank

CHRISTIAN & MISSIONARY ALLIANCE NAMED IN CONSPIRACY LAWSUIT FILED: CONSPIRACY TO DEFRAUD CHINESE CHURCH OF $650,000 CHURCH PROPERTYAND APPROXIMATELY $18,000 IN BANK ACCOUNTS

by James Sundquist

In a major lawsuit, the Mid America District of the Christian & Missionary Alliance (hereafter C&MA) was named by a group of former members of the Chinese Alliance Church of Colorado Springs. The C&MA is one of the largest Evangelical Protestant Christian denominations, with 2,010 C&MA churches in the U.S., and 440 in Canada, with approximately 417,000 members in the United States. The Plaintiff has alleged that the C&MA conspired to defraud and subsequently confiscate and convert their $650,000 church property and assets and emptied their approximately $18,000 in bank accounts, located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S.A. The Defendant, C&MA Mid America District Headquarters office, is located in Omaha, Nebraska. C&MA National Church Ministries Vice President Rev. John Soper endorsed and approved both the closure and the sale of the church property in two letters.

This is not unique. The Chinese church is just one of the more recent victims of the C&MA’s Church Growth Movement Church Multiplication, Church Health formulas for measuring spirituality, and Small Group grand strategies being implemented in the U.S., and Canada to takeover and transform churches. After the C&MA had given the Chinese Alliance Church of Colorado Springs an ultimatum of 15 months to redevelop, the lawsuit alleges that they reneged on it in 3 months. After closing the church down, the C&MA wouldn’t even let them keep their Chinese translation Bibles and library (refusing to return them even upon request in writing). After about 18 months the C&MA put the property on the market and sold the property to a Karate company. Named in the lawsuit are: Christian & Missionary Alliance, Randall Burg, District Superintendent for the Mid America District of the C&MA, the Mid America District of the C&MA, and Dr. Robert Trempert, Interim Pastor just prior to the closing of the church. This C&MA District includes Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. The Plaintiff also alleges that the C&MA secured and conveyed the deed without informing the congregation, then used unfounded charges to evict the whole congregation, which was about 30 regular attendees, and closed down the church and threw them out on the street. It is also the intent of former members of this church to alert and warn all C&MA churches, the church at large, and the Asian community throughout the world, that this could happen to them too! We are grateful to the many members of the national media have already asked to run this story even before this press release went out. These Chinese Christians and how the C&MA applied the Reversion Clause of its constitution to this church feels like this a “mortgage made in Hell”…you have to make mortgage payments to the C&MA [or its own approved lender], including interest…then when the building is paid off in half of the 15 year mortgage, you the borrower get to (have to) give the C&MA lender the building and property too…what a deal! Many of these older saints who came from Communist China where they were persecuted hoped that this could not happen in the U.S., let alone at the hands of the church. They found out they were wrong! On July 1, 2006, members of The Chinese Alliance Church of Colorado Springs discovered that the locks on their building had been changed when attempting to attend a prayer meeting. One Sunday, July 2, 2006, the congregrants came to worship and found out they were evicted from their own building, with the knowledge and consent, the Alliance, MAD, Burg, and Trempet proceeded to lock the Chinese Church out of its own building. Instead of taking care of widows and the homeless, the C&MA leaders created them, while simultaneously blaming these victims. Someone did come to their rescue and hear their Chinese church’s SOS cries for help. There was a good Samaritan in Colorado Springs who showed great mercy and provided shelter for these approximately 30 fleeing Chinese refugee saints and helped them get back on their feet again, and that was Pastor David Fitzgerald and the Garden Ranch Baptist Church. Then the Garden Ranch Baptist Church gave immediate relief under emergency powers, then helped them redevelop church polity and comply with requirements of the State of Colorado and the IRS to start a new church…all in a period of about six months…without strings attached.

Rev. Wayne Spriggs, Eastern PA District Director, and Rev. Daniel R. Wetzel, Assistant Vice-President of C&MA Church Ministries has written the pastors of the Eastern Pennslyvania C&MA District, either directly or indirectly renouncing the press release I sent out from the Chinese Church in Colorado Springs, CO, above. Since Mr. Wetzel has already written one C&MA District Superintendent, he will likely have written them all.

Contrary to what C&MA leaders would have you do, and that is hear the victims side of the story vs. just the perpetrators, as good Christians and good Bereans, you should want to read the other side of the story for yourselves. Therefore, Mr. Wetzel accuses me that “it is unlikely that any reputable media outlet will give serious attention to Sundquist’ assertions.” Mr. Wetzel has committed libel and defamation of character against me. First of all this is not my press release but was issued by the Chinese Church, with the contact person named as Keith Wong, who is also one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. Furthermore, it is primarily a summary of the contents of the extensive affidavit filed at the Colorado Springs Courthouse. Mr. Wetzel knows this as a top executive at C&MA Headquarters, because they too were served with the same papers filed by the attorneys. So Mr. Wetzel knows he is not telling you the truth. You ought to be able to obtain a copy yourself from the courthouse. If not, I will email you a photocopy. I have also informed the District Attorney in Colorado Springs who makes the final determination in who is criminally prosecuted that Mr. Wetzel has lied and published it. The C&MA is in deep enough trouble already. This letter from Mr. Wetzel will strike a crippling blow to his own credibility (and therefore C&MA) before both the upcoming civil trial as well as any criminal trial should the DA decide to prosecute. The local media in Colorado as well as the national media will also be apprised of Mr. Wetzel’s letter. Well my “assertions” are direct citations from both parties. As to Mr. Wetzel postulation that any reputable media outlet giving me serious attention, I invite you to read my bio on my website to see if that is true, such as Southwest Radio Church, VYC America, and many others. The Wall Street Journal ran a front page story, based on my assertions and exposed Rick Warren, in which I was a principal consultant for them. As to this story, one major media outlet has already requested running the story. Even if the media were to trash the press release as Mr. Wetzel has done, the media will do their own due diligence and read the file court papers as proof that the press release reflects the court filing. And they won’t be afraid to tell the community and their readers what they discover!

Don’t let Mr. Wetzel prevent you from doing your own due diligence on this story which is about to explode nationally in both secular and the Christian media. Mr. Spriggs has told you that what I wrote in the above commentary about him is “troubling.” But what should trouble you is not what I said, but his own threats…read it for yourselves. You do not need to be aware of me or be warned about me. But you better take heed what the C&MA leaders can do to you, if what is cited in the full report is any indication. You should also be warned about C&MA pastors who chose to retaliate against me vs. extending a life preserver to the SOS calls from the drowning Chinese Christians in Colorado. Then do what your conscience tells you to do and Scripture, not simply what C&MA leaders dictate!